Dear Budget: Reason #1 Why I Hate You | I Need You

This latest blog series was crafted off the Julia Stiles move, 10 Thing I Hate About You. A movie about a boy and a girl, she thought she hated him, but what she learned was that he was exactly what she needed.

Same with a budget. I know, hard to believe, but bear with me.

We have explored 9 reasons why we hate budgets.

10. It is never ending

9. We were never taught how to

8. This budget makes my butt look big

7. It’s not fair

6. We work hard for our money

5. You remind me of my ex-boyfriend

4. You are the monster under the bed

3. You don’t get me

2. It’s not you, It’s me

Along the way, I hope you learned some things about yourself. I hope you learned how to forgive yourself, how to look at this “whole budget-thing” with new eyes, but mostly, I hope you learned that your budget is really here for you. Like Heath Ledger. (is it a coincidence his last name is Ledger? Ledger, budget, I think not)

At the end of the movie, Kat (played by Julia Stiles) writes a poem about everything she hates about Patrick (Heath Ledger). She is there in front of the class, reading her poem, ugly crying, telling us all the reasons she hates Patrick. At the end she says ” I hate it that you're not around, and the fact that you didn't call. But mostly I hate the way I don't hate you. Not even close, not even a little bit, not even at all.”

The real reason for all the anger, tears and maybe some unladylike freaking language is because deep down you know you need a budget. You want to be self-sufficient and be the boss. “No one is going to tell you what to do”. Guess what! That is what a good budget, and man, does for you. They are there to support you. Your dreams, wants and goals. They help you chart the course and provide support when needed. Your budget is the blueprint and timeline to keep you on task for what you want to achieve. You need a budget. You know this. You hate this. Don’t look at this as something that ties you down. Take a real look at why you hate budgeting and shift the way you think.

So I suggest this. Go back and look at all the reasons you hate your budget. Read over the countdown blogs. How can you shift what you think about budgeting to serve your needs?

Your budget is the step you use to reach the next rung. It is what props you up during hard times like a payout at work, reduced hours, slow paying clients or when Scandal goes off the air. Maybe not that last one..but you get the idea. When shit happens your budget is going to be what saves you. It is what helped you build your savings and emergency fund. It is what helped you get out of debt. It may even be what helped you kick the cigarettes or ice cream habit, because it is telling you in black and white what you are spending on harming yourself.

Our budget is our ride or die, this is how we should feel about our budget. It may wear ugly combat boots and have other flaws, but deep down you know you belong together. That your life is empty without your budget, and if you break up things will never be the same; because you don’t hate your budget, not even close, not even a little bit, not even at all.